Sample image from Andigraf
Andigraf
Version 1.0.1
Bottom line: Great filters help make this camera more fun than you’re expecting
Andigraf by Subkernel is a new camera in the Quad-cam, Supersampler style. It’s an app that takes serial photography, using one of four multi-lens configurations from 4 to 9 lenses. It also features several “film styles” to apply filter effects to your images. Currently, there are four film styles — GrafPhoto Color, LoMode Turquoise, GrafProfessional Black&White, and 1945S Classic Sepia with more films promised in future updates.
Serial photography is a lot more fun than you would initially think and I really like this app!
I’d seen similar apps in the app store, but didn’t think I’d like shooting serial photographs, but I found it to be fun and a bit of a creative challenge to think about a series of images to capture the story, not just one.
One of the things that first caught my eye about Andigraf is that it supports full-resolution on the iPhone 2G, 3G and 3GS — up to 2048×1365 pixels. The app is skinned and has feels and works like a plastic toy camera. It has shades of Hipstamatic in the UI, in that lenses and films are changed with the flip of a finger. You may consider it nicked Hipstamtic’s user-interface, or you can look at it like Hipstamatic reinvented the iPhone camera interface. Either way, the interface is familiar and easy to use. There is an adjustable timer to set the delay between shots.
The app itself is good. It’s easy to use. The Supersampler, Quadcam and other toy camera styles are well done. The filters or “film styles” are well-rendered and very nicely lo-fi. The Turquoise filter adds a good vignette to each frame and a hint of cyan that gives it an old AGFA or Fuji 35mm film feel. The Black & White filter has good contrast and makes for a nice monochrome image.
The viewfinder is pretty accurate as to framing, except for the Supersampler (4 in a row) lenses, which produce thin and striplike images. The app renders about as quickly as you’re going to see in a full-res app of this class. A complete shot cycle for a Quadcam/Turquoise shot was about 35 seconds from shutter to “reload” on my 2G. It was about 42 seconds with the 9-lens option.
I did find one annoying bug. The Quadcam lenses save to the iPhone’s camera roll in portrait mode only, no matter which orientation your image was shot. I’d like to see this fixed in a future update.
What I like most about this app is the ability to tell a longer story in photographs, even if it’s only a series of images within a few seconds of each other. The quality of the photographs and the multiple lens options make this a good app to explore different styles of serial photography.
Andigraf won’t appeal to every photographer, but if you’ve never shot serial photography like this, try Andigraf. It’s $1.99 USD in the App Store and I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. It’s a good app to have fun discovering what you can do in a series of shots.
App Store link: Andigraf
=M=
~~~~
Glyn Evans recently reviewed Andigraf on The iPhoneography blog. Read his review and see his excellent video walk-thru of the app here. >>>
